Brand new The World's End Trailer is here

Brand new The World's End Trailer is here

Some good news this morning for fans of the Cornetto trilogy.

A brand new The World's End trailer has just dropped (warning - some spoilers ahead)

The World's End releases in NZ on July 18th.




There's a brand new poster for The World's End, starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost - directed by Edgar Wright

The Cornetto trilogy is coming to an end.

The World's End releases in New Zealand on July 18th

And here's the first trailer for The World's End, starring the brilliant comic duo of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost.

The World’s End is the third installment of Edgar Wright’s trilogy of comedies, following the successes Shaun of the Dead (2004) and Hot Fuzz (2007). Mr. Wright co-wrote the script with Simon Pegg, who will once again star alongside Nick Frost. Joining the team are actors Martin Freeman (Shaun of the Dead, The Hobbit), Paddy Considine (Hot Fuzz, The Bourne Ultimatum), Eddie Marsan (Sherlock Holmes), and Rosamund Pike (Jack Reacher).

20 years after attempting an epic pub crawl, five childhood friends reunite when one of them becomes hellbent on trying the drinking marathon again. They are convinced to stage an encore by mate Gary King (Simon Pegg), a 40-year-old man trapped at the cigarette end of his teens, who drags his reluctant pals to their hometown and once again attempts to reach the fabled pub – The World’s End. As they attempt to reconcile the past and present, they realize the real struggle is for the future, not just theirs but humankind’s. 

Reaching The World’s End is the least of their worries.

The Master: Blu Ray Review

The Master: Blu Ray Review

Rating: R13
Released by Roadshow Home Entertainment

Joaquin Phoenix plays Naval veteran Freddie Quell, who's back home in America after the end of the war and who's unsettled and unsure about what's ahead. An alcoholic, he lurches from one job to the next in a booze fuelled   state and one day ends up as a stowaway on a ship.

However, it turns out that ship is being operated by a group called The Cause, led by their charismatic leader, Lancaster Dodd aka The Master. Soon, Freddie is taken in by The Cause and they try to convert him to their ways.

But, is Freddie beyond saving? And what is it that The Master sees in Freddie that's so mesmerising? None of these questions are really answered in Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master.

Granted, it's masterful performances from Seymour Hoffman and Phoenix which really anchor this film as it rolls from one moment to the next. Some have said that The Master is about Scientology and a thinly veiled attack on the religion which has swept Hollywood. I'm not 100% sure I see that in it, but I can understand where it's coming from given that it's about the hold one man has on a group of people who are completely in his thrall, despite some feeling that he's simply making it up as he goes along.

What is evident though is that the film from Anderson shows why he's such a searing talent in the film-making department. Scenes take a while to build up and when he keeps the camera on his two leads, it's mesmerising and utterly compelling to behold.

One sequence, an interrogation between Quell and Dodd, is just an absolute masterclass in how to frame a scene and how to get the best of your leads. It helps that Phoenix and Seymour Hoffman are at their absolute peak as Dodd tries to burrow into Quell's mental state of mind. That powerful scene alone stays with you long after the film's finished. Which is just as well, because there are a fair few unanswered questions throughout - such as why Dodd is so determined to stick by Quell when his wife (who at times appears to be the power behind the Cause) and family tell him to cut him loose. Granted, they're two sides of one coin with Dodd the charismatic, chiselled and sophisticated leader and Quell the base, loose scoundrel - but there's never any real reason given for the lifelong devotion.

Amy Adams delivers a masterfully understated performance and you have plenty of questions as to whether she's the actual power behind The Cause. (Behind every great man, and all that....) Once again, she shows that she's an incredibly versatile talent who's immensely watchable in anything she does.

All in all, The Master is an indispensable piece of film - it's likely to be loved by critics and award ceremonies but potentially will puzzle audiences who may be a little lost to its appeal. 

Extras: Teasers and trailers

Rating:

Gangster Squad: Blu Ray Review

Gangster Squad: Blu Ray Review

Rating: R16
Released by Roadshow Home Entertainment

1949 Hollywoodland - Former boxer and Mob boss Mickey Cohen (Penn in an occasionally cartoonish performance) is making a move on the Los Angeles scene, gradually manouvering himself to take off most of the rackets of the town and increase the tentacles of the bad old guys.

Sick and tired of the corruption within the system hindering the police's attempts to foil Mickey's plans, Chief Bill Parker (a grizzled and gruff Nolte) calls on former Army soldier and current Sergeant John O'Mara (Brolin) to go beyond the means of the law and do whatever he can to prevent the criminal underbelly from winning the day.

So, O'Mara pulls together a motley crew of five, known as the Gangster Squad to try and help save the day, putting the gang of those operating outside of the law on a collision course with the corruption and the Mob. Gangster Squad is a pulpy, trashier version of The Untouchables.

It's a film which guns for stylish, but chooses to go for cliche and full on violence while eschewing a subtle and smarter approach to the Mob vs police story which has been told time and time again.

So, in many ways, unfortunately it brings nothing new to the mobster genre and certainly does little to break the mould despite a fine ensemble cast and stylish overall feel.

That's not to say it's not enjoyable - merely, that if you're going to Gangster Squad expecting to see the 21st Century version of The Untouchables, you'll be disappointed with script and dialogue which is straight out of the 1950s RKO TV and Radio serial world. With cliched dialogue, the rat-a-tat-tat of tommy guns and fairly predictable story choices, mixed in with a gratuitous cacophony of bullets and plenty of slow-mo moments during the action sequences, it's eschewed subtlety for a predominance of violence. 

All in all, the Gangster Squad movie is no slick and sophisticated crime noir, and is more of a popcorn blockbuster, aimed at satiating the masses. It is so superficial, you'll fuhgeddaboutit the minute it's over.

Extras: Commentary, behind the scenes pieces, style pieces, deleted scenes

Rating:

I, Anna : DVD Review

I, Anna : DVD Review

Rating: R16
Released by Transmission

It's back to the noir world for this thriller with an older cast (something of a rarity these days).

Charlotte Rampling stars as Anna Welles, an older woman whom we first meet making a phone call (how quaint - someone actually using a phonebox). It then shifts back to a grimy London and a speed dating singles night out for the older crowd.

Anna meets Ralph Brown's George before heading back to his tower block to take the relationship further. But we next glimpse Anna stumbling from the tower block and a murder investigation begins to unfold. Headed by Gabriel Byrne's DCI Bernie Reid, he's looking into the death of George....is Anna in someway implicated in this? Intrigued by their first brief meeting, Reid begins a romantic pursuit of Anna - but is his investigation crossing over some boundaries?

Grimy, murky, overcooked and overwrought, I Anna is a thriller which really only benefits from its lead actors. Rampling and Byrne make an affable pair and give credence to a story which takes its time to get going. As the layers of the narrative onion peel back, you may well be left crying - for good and bad reasons. While there are several claustrophobic shots and flashbacks which help tell the story, there's really little meat to these bones as the mystery unfolds. A weary looking Gabriel Byrne brings a dogged cynicism to his leading detective, while Rampling's nuanced and subtle performance hints at tragedy lurking in her past and potentially, her future.

All in all though, I, Anna is a bit of a muddled mystery; one which could have been more if the script had been a little deeper and engaging. Instead, what remains is a piece which looks murky and grainy with a cast whose excellence is barely tested.

Rating:

Brand new Man of Steel trailer is here

Brand new Man of Steel trailer is here

He's baaaack.

Well, soonish.

A brand new Man of Steel trailer has just been released..

New poster for The World's End

New poster for The World's End

There's a brand new poster for The World's End, starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost - directed by Edgar Wright,

The Cornetto trilogy is coming to an end.

The World's End releases in New Zealand on July 18th

And here's the first trailer for The World's End, starring the brilliant comic duo of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost.

The World’s End is the third installment of Edgar Wright’s trilogy of comedies, following the successes Shaun of the Dead (2004) and Hot Fuzz (2007). Mr. Wright co-wrote the script with Simon Pegg, who will once again star alongside Nick Frost. Joining the team are actors Martin Freeman (Shaun of the Dead, The Hobbit), Paddy Considine (Hot Fuzz, The Bourne Ultimatum), Eddie Marsan (Sherlock Holmes), and Rosamund Pike (Jack Reacher).

20 years after attempting an epic pub crawl, five childhood friends reunite when one of them becomes hellbent on trying the drinking marathon again. They are convinced to stage an encore by mate Gary King (Simon Pegg), a 40-year-old man trapped at the cigarette end of his teens, who drags his reluctant pals to their hometown and once again attempts to reach the fabled pub – The World’s End. As they attempt to reconcile the past and present, they realize the real struggle is for the future, not just theirs but humankind’s. 

Reaching The World’s End is the least of their worries.

The Hangover: Part III: Movie Review

The Hangover: Part III: Movie Review

Cast: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Justin Bartha, Ken Jeong, John Goodman, Heather Graham
Director: Todd Phillips

The Wolf Pack is back - for the final time.

And it looks like everyone is along for the ride.

When Alan's father dies, the group gathers for the funeral, but they feel that Alan's behaviour, now he's off his meds, warrants taking him to a treatment centre for some of his problems.

But, as ever, when the Wolf Pack is back, there's nothing but chaos.

On the way to the hospital, they're attacked by John Goodman's gangster Marshall, who wants to track down Mr Chow (Ken Jeong) who has stolen millions from him. Nonplussed as to what that has to do with them, the Wolfpack realise that Galifianakis' Alan has been in touch with Chow while he's been in jail in Thailand.

And when Marshall kidnaps Doug (Bartha) after Chow breaks out, the pressure's on....once again. Only this time, failure could prove deadly.

Bigger, brasher, darker and perhaps a little less funny than what you'd be expecting for the Wolfpack, there's certainly a feeling of the epic here as the gang rolls out one last time in the latest Hangover movie.

It's definitely not a film which is a rehash of what's gone before - in fact, if anything, it's more of a heist movie with lashings of psychosis and oddballs throughout. Mainly in part due to Ken Jeong's Chow getting a lot more screentime and going OTT than he has done in previous Hangovers. And whether you'll enjoy this, is largely dependant  on how you feel about the character, because there's less humour between the group and if anything, more drama as it unfolds with a ticking deadline looming.

Tonally, it's a bit of an odd mix as the film starts off with a slightly loopy attitude with Alan causing a pile-up due to decapitating his giraffe. But then, it shifts into a film with more darkness and surreal depth than previous ones as Alan's father's offed and he offers a eulogy of delusion, the gang gets together to intervene as Alan's off his meds and the group are kidnapped.

It's here you start to get the feeling that the bell is knelling for the last time - as callbacks and characters from the other films are thrown in for good measure. Even the baby from the first film is given his time back in the spotlight.

The group works well together - Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis and Ed Helms have a great bond and chemistry as Phil, Alan and Stu which transcends the usual buddy schtick as the demented road trip cum heist movie plays out. If anything, Jeong stands out a little within this dynamic and Goodman offers little but rather annoyed mobster. It's only really Galifianakis' character who, despite being idiocy incarnate, manages some vestiges of growing up - albeit it in a rather childish way. Though his flirtation with Melissa McCarthy's pawn shop worker is quite something to behold.

That's not to say that The Hangover: Part III is not without laughs and some good set-ups and set pieces. the final sequence at Las Vegas' Caears' Palace conveys all the sleaze and discomfort you'd expect from the group returning back to the scene of a crime from years ago. It's a natural conclusion for the film and the franchise - toning down the gross out humour and excesses of the Thailand adventure may be a benefit to those watching this time around, though you do feel some will want for more laughs as the madcap journey runs on.

Overall, The Wolf Pack is worth running with one last time for a sort of road trip - but don't be surprised if you have a feeling this threequel disappoints slightly as a darker piece plays out.

(It's also worth sticking around for the credits of the film as well - given there's an extra sequence, which really does hark back to how The Hangover made its cinematic contribution. And it's certainly a few minutes which make you feel there could have been a little more of them peppered throughout the movie.)

Rating: